His Perfect Bride? (8 page)

Olly nodded. Definitely. He’d always been aware that there was a giant mother-shaped hole
in his childhood. During his schooldays he’d hated the times when everyone but him had made cards or gifts for Mother’s Day. Or when only his father turned up for assemblies or sports days or parents’ evenings. When he was still small he’d used to imagine what it must be like to snuggle up to a mother at bedtime. Or to have one stroke his fevered brow when he was sick. To spoil him a bit.

His father had been good at dismissing a lot of his childhood illnesses: ‘
It’s just a cold’
or
‘It’s just a tummy bug’
. He’d done his best, though, occasionally sitting on the edge of Olly’s bed when he was poorly, but it had always been hard for him to switch from ‘doctor mode’ to ‘father mode’.

‘I guess so.’

Stuck for something to break the tension, he handed her his mug and thanked her for the hot chocolate.

She walked him to the front door, opened it. He walked out into the snow, his footsteps crunching on its crispy surface. He turned to say goodbye.

‘Thank you for your help today, Olly.’

‘It was nothing.’ He smiled.

‘No, I mean it. You’ve really been so kind about me taking your grandmother’s cottage and putting my little zoo in it. I appreciate they must have been a shock.’

He looked deeply into her warm brown eyes. ‘I’m learning to expect the unexpected with you, Lula. Don’t worry.’

She smiled, then leaned forward to stand on tiptoe and peck him on the cheek.

As her lips brushed against his face he froze, his eyes closing in surprised delight at the feel of her soft, warm lips against his skin. Close up, he could smell her slight perfume, but couldn’t identify it. Whatever it was, it was delightful. Summery and warm. A hint of jasmine…?

Quickly he regained control of himself, knowing he probably looked a bit idiotic with his eyes closed, inhaling her scent like a kid on a gravy advert. Flushing, he stepped back further into the snow and wished her goodnight, his heart sinking as she closed the door and he was no longer exposed to the warmth and light of the cottage.

Olly trudged back to his four-wheel drive, his thoughts as deep as the snow.

What was going on?

Am I developing feelings for Lula? I can’t be… She’s…what? Different? Quirky? No. She’s beautiful—that’s what she is. Inside and out.

* * *

Lula closed the cottage door and touched her lips with her fingers. They were still tingling from the kiss and she was shocked. It had only been meant as a goodnight kiss, a thank-you kiss. It hadn’t been meant
as anything else.

So why did it
feel
like something else?

I like Olly. He’s lovely, yes. But…

She wasn’t here to start a relationship.

He can be my friend, but that’s got to be all.

It would be too complicated if she allowed a relationship to start up—and with Olly, of all people! He was her colleague. In a small village practice. It couldn’t develop into anything. He’d already told her that he wanted to have children, and she couldn’t have them, so… No. She couldn’t pursue
anything
with Olly.

But he’s so delicious!

No, Lula. Behave yourself…

She groaned and took the mugs into the kitchen. She stared out of the window into the white expanse of the still garden. She put the mugs in the sink and saw Anubis in his tank. Sighing, she took a step closer and slowly lifted off the lid.

All I’ve got to do is put my hand in.

Just reach out.

That’s not hard, is it?

But her hands stayed where they were. It was still too scary.

She closed the lid, shivering as Anubis stretched out one long hairy leg and began to move.

‘Time for bed, I think.’

Lula switched off the lights and then spent many hours staring at the roof of her bedroom ceiling, lost in thought.

* * *

Olly sat at his kitchen table, holding a mug of cold tea and staring into space. Lula had only been here a short while and yet he felt she’d begun to turn his ordered life upside down and inside out.

He felt uncomfortable with it. The last time he’d been thrown upside down with his thoughts had been after Rachel had left. When he’d discovered what she’d done…

Lula isn’t anything like Rachel.

Lula’s attitude to life was so refreshing. She believed in challenging herself, facing her fears, stepping out of the ruts and taking risks. She followed her heart. But she wasn’t whimsical or wishy-washy. She had a purpose, she had fun and she was extremely intelligent.

And he was attracted to her.

Simple as that, really, and that scared him. She was nothing like his perfect woman. Or the vision of a perfect woman he’d stupidly concocted in his infamous list. He’d never expected to be intrigued by a woman with tattoos and multicoloured hair. He’d always thought he’d be the type to fall for a regular woman, with normal hair and her only body decoration being a sedate pair of earrings, perhaps a ring or two. A woman who
wore suits to work, who drove a sensible car. A woman with class.

Lula has class.

Was it her differences that intrigued him? Was it the fact that she was so unique and so unlike anyone he’d ever met before that made him unable to help gravitating towards her?

No. It was more than that.

He felt
different
when he was with her. He couldn’t explain it. It was as if he was seeing life differently. Through her eyes the world was a place of wonder and possibility again, rather than a world of…what?

Beige
. That was what. Lula was right about him. Perhaps he had been stuck in his rut for too long? That thing with Rachel had forced him into it even more. Perhaps he did need his world to be shaken up?

Was Lula the woman to do it?

Did he want her to?

Olly got up and threw his tea down the sink, rinsed out his mug and left it on the drainer, staring into the snow through his kitchen window.

He
did
want her to. But he was worried about letting go of who he was. Would he lose himself? Would he lose the respect of others if he let go and went wild for a bit?

I’m a doctor. A GP. I’m meant to be sensible. People rely on that sensibility.

He’d always been strait-laced. Run of the mill. Down to earth. He’d always thought that was an attractive quality. That people liked to know where they were with him. That he wasn’t unpredictable.

But hearing Lula’s story—hearing how her life had been, all the challenges she’d faced—had made him look twice at himself.

What challenges had
he
had to face? Just two. The death of his mother and the loss of Rachel and the baby. The one she’d never told him about. And it hadn’t been an accidental loss, either…

Even so, regarding his mum, he’d been too young to feel the grief of what the loss of her had actually meant. He’d never known her—not really. He only knew what his dad had told him about her. What a wonderful woman she’d been and how in love with her his dad had been.

And Rachel…? He’d blundered wholeheartedly into a relationship with her, expecting it to be exactly like his father’s with his mother. He’d assumed Rachel would be the same type of woman as his mother. Someone perhaps looking for family the way he was? Dedicated to him.

Only it hadn’t happened that way, had it?

Rachel had been so many things, but none of those that he’d expected. She’d not been as dedicated to him as he’d hoped, and she’d hated village life. Too rural for her. She’d been a city girl,
through and through, and he should have seen that from the start.

And then I wrote that damned list! That stupid list!

He’d thought the list would protect him from getting his heart broken again. That if he only went out with women whose life goals and attitudes matched those on his list, then he would be safe from heartbreak and pain and loss.

And what was he doing now? Ignoring the list and falling for the most outrageous, multicoloured, tattooed zookeeper he’d ever met!

Falling for her…

Was
he? It felt like it. He knew he couldn’t stop thinking about her. When he was with her he soaked up her vitality and presence like a sponge, and when she was absent his mind lingered on her, returning his thoughts to her every single time, like an obsessed teenager with a crush.

That kiss tonight… Goose pimples shivered over his skin in torment. The touch of her lips had been magical. He’d wanted more. Had craved more. And yet…he’d been afraid to seek it out. What if he pursued her and got it all wrong? He’d done that before. If he got involved with her, feeling as he was now, and it didn’t work out… Well, he’d be devastated. Floored. And he didn’t need that. He’d had heartbreak and he didn’t want to experience it again.

He sought happiness and love and respect—the type of relationship his father had had with his mother.

Ideal.

Could he have that with Lula? She couldn’t have children, but was that important?

The uncertainty that filled him made his steps heavy as he went up to bed.

CHAPTER FOUR

A
FTER A SLEEPLESS NIGHT
, Lula woke feeling exhausted.

She fed Anubis, dropping a couple of crickets into his tank, and then gave Nefertiti and Cleo fresh water. They were pleased to see her, holding onto her fingers with their little pink paws and licking her happily. She loved their ratty kisses and stroked them both before putting them back into their cage. She’d not had them out as often as she’d have liked since moving into the cottage. They were used to free ranging, and she knew she ought to organize some sort of safe play area for them so they could come out more.

However, she’d have to pick her place carefully. This cottage was a rental and she didn’t expect to stay in Atlee Wold for long. She didn’t want them damaging any of the old furniture in Moonrose Cottage, especially as she knew how much the place meant to Olly.

Olly…

She really liked him. She knew it deep in her soul. They’d just connected so easily, the pair of them. It was easy to be in his company, and it was strange to think that they’d only really known
each other for a couple of days. Lula felt as if she’d known him for ages.

He was an old soul in the body of a young, fit, handsome man. But she liked that a lot.

Today Lula was going to be running her own surgery, rather than sitting in with him, and she was looking forward to it. But she was also looking forward to seeing Olly again and finding out if he’d heard anything about the abandoned baby yet. She hoped so. She was worried about the mother. Where was she?
Who
was she? Was she all right? She couldn’t imagine what it must feel like to give birth and then abandon the baby somewhere…

Whoever had felt pushed into that situation had to be incredibly scared. Or brave. Or a bit of both of those. Selfless, too. Perhaps whoever it was had hoped that by doing so she would be giving the baby the best chance in life. She’d obviously cared about the baby or she wouldn’t have wrapped it up so well, provided it with a hot water bottle to keep it warm in the snow.

Lula slipped her feet into her Union Jack wellingtons and put her pink shoes into her backpack. Wrapping up tightly against the cold, she set off to work.

As she tramped through the snow she waved hello to various villagers who were braving the drifts to get their morning paper and milk from
the local store. When she entered the surgery she stamped her feet on the mat, glad to be in the warmth again.

Olly was already there, standing behind the reception desk. He was on the telephone and acknowledged her with a smile. She paused briefly to look at him, slowly taking off her scarf and gloves.

He was very tall and broad. Through his shirt she could see he had some nicely defined muscles, especially in his arms.

I wonder if he works out?

He had a sickeningly flat belly that she would have died for, and a trim waist. Boy, did he look good! Yummy—despite the sensible pale blue shirt and navy chinos. Flushing, she put her scarf and gloves in her backpack and pulled off her wellies to reveal stripy multicoloured socks with individual toes.

‘Nice.’ Olly pointed at her feet as he came off the phone.

‘Thanks. They’re cosy. Something urgent?’ She was referring to the phone call.

‘Just checking on Bonnie and the baby. Both are fine. Baby’s taking milk well and Bonnie had a comfortable night.’

‘That’s great.’ She slipped her pink boots on. ‘No sign of the baby’s mother yet?’

He shook his head, and she could see he was eyeing her boots.

‘You ready to heal the sick?’

‘As always.’ She smiled. ‘Though I might just grab a cup of tea first.’

‘How’s the zoo this morning?’

‘They’re all well.’

He walked with her into the small staff area, watching whilst she made a cup of tea.

‘Want one?’

He nodded. ‘Thanks.’

She was aware he was still watching her, and surprisingly she felt quite self-conscious. What had happened?

One tingly kiss and I turn into an awkward teenager again?

‘Do you have sugar? I forget.’

‘One, please.’ He seemed amused by her forgetfulness, but took the drink from her with thanks, their fingers brushing and causing electrifying alertness. She eyed his strong hands wrapped around the mug and wondered what it might be like to be held by them…

Stop it, Lula! You’re not here for Olly.

She made an excuse to disappear into her room, switching on the computer and booting up the patient file system. The room was bare of her personality, but it would do for the brief time she was there. Normally she would put her own
things up—have her own knick-knacks on the desk to entertain smaller patients and her own artwork on the walls in bright colours to make the room more lively—but she wasn’t there permanently. This was just a short-term locum position. She wasn’t planning on staying.